Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1887-05-13
A DISASTROUS ENACTMENT.
THE S0-CALLED "ALiEN ACrn AND
ITS EFFECT.


PropertY-The Father Of the Bill Ad.
mits that He Did Not Know the Fl.
feet 1t Would Have.
Mining and Scientific Pressl
Congress at its last session passed
law by the provisions of which no per.
son not citizen of the United States,
or who has not declared his intention
to become such, can acquire, hold or
own any real estate in any of the Ter
ritories or in the District of Colum-
bia, unless it be acquired by inherit,
ance or in the collection of de bt by
ordinary process of law; this inabil-
ity applying, also, to any incorpora-
ton not created by or under the laws
of the United States or OF some State
or Territory. Under this law no ill.,
corporation or association whatever,
more than 20 per cent. of whose stock
is owned by foreigners, can acquire
or hold any real estate in any of the
Territories or in the. District of Co
lumbia. Under this law no incorpor-
atoms, except such as are organized
for building railroads, canals or turn
pixies are allowed to own more than
5000 acres of land in any of the Ter
ritories; nor can any company organ.
ICED for building such structures own
any more land in the Territories than
is necessary for operating the same,
unless such land has been granted TO
it by act of Congress. Any land &C.
quired and held in violation of the
provisions of this law is liable to be
forfeited to the United States.
This Act of Congress, of which the
above is synopsis, appears to us to
be open to criticism. In the first
place, it seems to have been drafted
in loose and careless manner. What
does the author of this law mean by
"territories or in the District of Co.
lumbia," as he has it in the last clause
of the second section of the Act i
Or why does he speak of the "terri
tories" commencing the word with a
small st." as if he supposed they con.
sisted of unsegregated portions o,
the public domain instead of repre-.
senting organized political divisions
of the country?
Though obscure in its meaning and
faulty in its style and phraseology
this law is open to other and more Sc
rious objections. Indeed, we are al
a loss to guess why it ever passed al
all. Granted that it will be repealed al
the next session of Congress-, tina
fails to satisfactorily explain the rea
son of its enactment! OF course
we know that it was ostensibly de
signed to prevent the further acquisi.
ton of large tracts of farming anG
grazing lands by foreigners. Blu
why extend its provisions to mine.
and mining properties? Who was
complaining because foreigners were
investing their money in real estate o.
this kind, or what possible cause coulc
there be for such complaint ? None
whatever The owners of mines ir
the Territories were only too an xiou.
to have them do so. To the Ole
World, with its cheap and abundant
capital, they naturally looked for aid
To induce these people abroad to as
sist them with their ample means i.
what these miners have been laborine
to accomplish from the first. Over
looking the many losses they had il
times past sustained in mining ven
lures, these people, beginning once
more to regard this class of invest
ments with favor, had been turning
their attention strongly of late t
these West-lying Territories of thu
: United States.
At this juncture, when foreign in
vestors were beginning to take
lively interest in our mines; when tn
sales of many valuable properties
were being negotiated abroad, ane
millions of unemployed English cap
ital was about to be transferred to thi
country, Congress in its wisdom en-
acts law that not only tends to dis
courage foreign investment in GU
mines but may have the effect to pre-
vent it altogether. From every quartz
we hear of the mischief it is likely t.
. cause, and has, in fact, already caused
> We see it stated in the Engineering
and Mining Journal, by party claim
ing to be conversant with the facts
8 that sales of mines in Idaho alone t
the amount of $10,OOO,OOO, pendin,
in England and Scotland with ever
probability of being consummated
have already fallen through and bee
S abandoned in consequence of thi
3 law. That Montana has from thi
cause suffered to an equal, and tn
other Territories to a proportional
extent, may reasonably be inferr.e
But the injury already caused will b
y as nothing compared with what wi
: in the long run result from this il
J, advised enactment.
y. The English, if late accounts fro,